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The tomb of the pharaoh Thutmose II was identified near Luxor in 2025: the first Egyptian king's tomb found since Tutankhamun's in 1922.

Luxor, Egypt, 2025

HistoryArchaeology

The story behind the card

A joint Egyptian and British team led by Piers Litherland found the tomb, known as C4, in 2022 in the Western Wadis, desert valleys in the hills west of Luxor. In 2025 Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities announced whose it was: alabaster jar fragments named Thutmose II as the dead king and Hatshepsut as his great royal wife. Thutmose II ruled in the 15th century BC; after his death Hatshepsut took the throne herself. The chamber kept a blue ceiling painted with yellow stars and traces of the Amduat, a text about the sun's night journey through the underworld that was reserved for kings. Built below a slope where floodwater poured in, the tomb was badly damaged, and the king's body was moved in ancient times.

Türkçe oku
Firavun II. Thutmose'un mezarı 2025'te Luksor yakınlarında kesin olarak tanımlandı. Bu, 1922'de bulunan Tutankamon'un mezarından bu yana ortaya çıkan ilk Mısır kralı mezarı.
Luksor, Mısır, 2025

C4 olarak bilinen mezarı, Piers Litherland yönetimindeki Mısırlı ve İngiliz ortak bir ekip 2022'de, Luksor'un batısındaki tepelerde yer alan ve Batı Vadileri diye anılan çöl vadilerinde buldu. Mısır Turizm ve Eski Eserler Bakanlığı mezarın kime ait olduğunu 2025'te açıkladı: Kaymaktaşı küp parçalarında ölen kral olarak II. Thutmose'un, “büyük kraliyet eşi” olarak da Hatşepsut'un adı yazılıydı. II. Thutmose MÖ 15. yüzyılda hüküm sürdü; ölümünden sonra Hatşepsut tahta kendisi geçti. Mezar odasında sarı yıldızlarla bezeli mavi bir tavan ve güneşin yeraltı dünyasındaki gece yolculuğunu anlatan, krallara ayrılmış Amduat metninden izler korunmuş. Sel sularının döküldüğü bir yamacın dibine yapılan mezar ağır hasar görmüş; kralın naaşı da daha antik çağda başka bir yere taşınmış.

Sources and further reading

Background reading: Thutmose II
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